Burgess Franklin Collins American artist. Date of Birth: 06.08.1923 Country: USA

1. Early Life and Education
2. Atomic Revelation and Artistic Calling
3. The Six Gallery and the Beat Generation
4. Influences and Artistic Style
5. Legacy and Retrospective

Early Life and Education

Born on August 6, 1923, in Long Beach, California, Jess Collins initially pursued chemistry at the California Institute of Technology. However, after being drafted into military service, he worked on plutonium production for the Manhattan Project.

Atomic Revelation and Artistic Calling

Following his discharge in 1946, Collins worked at the Hanford Atomic Energy Project in Richland, Washington, while also devoting time to drawing. At age 25, he experienced a "vision" of nuclear annihilation in 1975. This profound experience prompted him to abandon his scientific career and focus on art.

The Six Gallery and the Beat Generation

In 1949, Collins enrolled at the California School of Arts and Crafts (now the San Francisco Art Institute). He adopted the mononym "Jess" following a split with his family. In 1951, he met poet Robert Duncan, a relationship that would endure until Duncan's death in 1988.

Together with Duncan and painter Harry Jacobus, Jess co-founded the King Ubu Gallery in San Francisco in 1952. The gallery became a pivotal space for alternative art and was later re-established by poet Jack Spicer as the Six Gallery, a gathering place for the Beat Generation.

Influences and Artistic Style

Jess's earlier works were influenced by the surrealist collages of Max Ernst. He incorporated Victorian engravings into his art and explored themes of chemistry, alchemy, the occult, and male beauty. His "Translations" series (1959-1976) employed multiple layers of paint and diverse styles.

Later, Jess created elaborate collages using old books and comic strips. In the 1970s, he embarked on a series of collages incorporating jigsaw puzzle pieces. This work embraced nostalgia and the evocative power of images from the recent past.

Legacy and Retrospective

Jess Collins passed away in San Francisco at the age of 80 in 2004. His work has been exhibited internationally and is included in major museum collections. A major retrospective, "Jess: A Grand Collage, 1951-1993," toured the United States in 1993-1994, accompanied by a publication of the same name.